


What's a little Mistletoe anyway?

by LucindaE



Category: Cardfight!! Vanguard
Genre: Christmas Party, Fluff, Kazuma swears like once but it's in his head so it's alright, M/M, secret santa gift
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2019-02-23 10:53:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13188573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LucindaE/pseuds/LucindaE
Summary: A Christmas party at Shion's manor turns into a plan for a certain stepbrother to get Kazuma and Chrono together!





	What's a little Mistletoe anyway?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Poppy_Head](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poppy_Head/gifts).



> Wow this is super late RIP I'm so sorry, but I hope you enjoy your present Nessa! It was definitely a lot of fun to write.

“Merry Christmas Kazuma!”

The blue haired boy looked unamused at the sight before him.

“Uh, Shindou? What the hell are you wearing?”

Chrono looked at him confused.

“Can’t you tell? It’s a reindeer.”

“I know that. Why the hell are you wearing a reindeer costume?”

Chrono scratched his head. “Well, see, I kinda lost a bet to Kamui.”

“A bet?”

“Yeah. He told me there was no way I’d be able to fully clean the shop in less than 41 minutes, and I almost had him! But then I missed a corner and wound up in this as my punishment. But you know, it’s not bad at all.”

“Oh definitely not!” Kazumi butted in. “You look absolutely adorable, wouldn’t you say Ma-kun?” 

Kazuma was face palming at this point. This whole thing was annoying him to no end, if only because his step-brother had to say what he was thinking. And of course to hide his flushed face as well. Chrono was acting so damn cute he couldn’t stand it.

“Anyway, come on in. Almost everyone else is here.”

As he entered the Kiba estate, taking off his coat, he was greeted by a familiar faces.

“Kazuma! Glad you could make it!”

He nodded at his teammate, Taiyou Asukawa, who ran up to him with such glee, sporting a sleek ochre yellow vest on the verge of a golden brown overtop a white button-up shirt and dark brown pants. It was endearing.

He looked around, seeing all the people who’d shown up for the joint Christmas party. As well as the familiar crowd he was used to, Kamui’s team, Q4, and some of their friends were all here as well. Surprisingly, Verno, Kazumi’s model teammate, was also here. She waved Kazumi down before they began a conversation of their own.

“Welcome to the Kiba estate. I hope you found your way alright.”

Shion, who’d come to greet them with Tokoha, was dressed in a formal black suit and a light blue bowtie to match. Tokoha wore an elegant emerald green dress with off the shoulder sleeves. They looked quite dashing, especially compared to the final Try3 member in his reindeer getup.

“Why thank you Shion. Your directions were impeccable, as with most everything you do.”

Kazuma almost laughed out loud; the way his brother was speaking was so out of character, was he trying to impress him? Even now his brother couldn’t help the fanboy inside him.

“I’m very happy to hear that.”

“And good timing too, we were about to start off with some games while we wait for the last few people to show up.”

“Who’s left anyway? Besides Kai- he’s still in Europe right?”

As the trio began listing off the guests that hadn’t arrived yet, Kazuma took the time to look around some more. The inside of the manor was about what he expected: super richy-rich people stuff. It was kinda intimidating; it reminded him of his old house. He looked down at himself, at the newly bought navy blue 3-piece suit his brother insisted he get for tonight. He didn’t see the point, when else was he going to wear this?

“You clean up nice.”

His complaints were immediately washed away as he looked to his left. Frick.

“Not bad Kazuma, not bad.” Chrono lightly elbowed him.

“W-whatever.”

He turned away, grumbling as the reindeer smiled.

“...I’m keeping the suit,” he whispered to Kazumi, who celebrated with a fist pump.

“Alright everyone, gather ‘round!” Tokoha called. Everyone began to circle around her.

“We’re just waiting for the last few people to show up, so for now we’re going to play a little game-“

“Of pin the tail on the reindeer!” Jaime burst out of seemingly nowhere, pushing a certain swirl into the center of the circle. Yes, this is going exactly where you think it’s going.

“W-wait, I never agreed to this! Kamui!”

He looked over in desperation to the older teen who only smiled cheekily.

“Sorry Chrono, this is part of your punishment for losing the bet. Have fun!”

“What?! You never-!”

“Alright, let’s get started! Who’s up first?” Tokoha completely ignored him.

“I’ve got the tail!” Jaime waved around a brown fluffy ball of something- were reindeer tails fluffy? Kazuma didn’t know- not that he had any urgency to find out because he had bigger things to worry about. Like his brother volunteering him.

“I think Ma-kun should go first!” He pushed his younger brother toward the center.

“O-oi!” He protested. But it seems like he couldn’t get out of this one. Everyone was on board.

“Here you are good sir!” Jaime placed the fluffy entity in his hands. Kazuma sighed as he was blindfolded. Maybe this would be okay, it was only a game...where he wouldn’t be able to see...and he had to pin something on Chrono...around the lower regions of his body- okay, maybe this wouldn’t be okay.

Both he and his mind were spinning, and before he knew it he was going along with fate, dizzily taking steps and taking directions from the others around him.

“Left Kazuma left!”

“Too far! Go back!”

“No no, keep going!”

This seemed to go on forever in Kazuma’s mind, but in reality, it’d been less than a minute. At last, he seemed to be somewhere in Chrono’s vicinity.

“Oh, and you aren’t allowed to feel around. That would just give everything away! Pin with confidence! Let your heart lead you to victory!” Jaime bounced around.

Kazuma, who could only imagine what was going on around him, sighed. Let his heart lead him to Chrono’s butt? Obviously, Jaime wasn’t thinking like that, but it was basically what he was saying. He could hear the subtle sound of breathing in front of him, so he knew he was close. The problem was he didn’t know which way Chrono was facing. The breathing was too quiet to get a good idea of where he was, and he couldn’t feel any warmth from his breath, which meant he was breathing through his nose. Slowly, he bent down. He had a 50% chance of getting this right- maybe 25% if Chrono was actually sideways in relation to him, but he wasn’t going to think about it too hard. Just let his heart lead him to victory!

As he stuck the fluff ball on what he assumed to be Chrono’s backside, he could hear snickering from around him.

“Well, he had the right idea...”

Confused, he stood up and tugged the blindfold off of his eyes. They were right: he had the right idea. Unfortunately, his 50% chance had failed him. Fortunately, he didn’t go as low as he thought, but to place it in that general area... why him?

The room burst into laughter, most noticeably Kamui and Jaime. Even the most stoic and reserved guests like Enishi and Verno found themselves chuckling at the outcome.

“Pushing your luck, eh Kazuma?” Chrono chided playfully, his hands on his hips as he shook around the fluff stuck to his lower stomach.

“N-not on purpose, you dimwit!”

He blushed at Chrono’s teasing, although he wasn’t the only one feeling the heat, as the other was blushing as well.

Once everyone had calmed down, it was Jaime’s turn to go next. He didn’t do much better than Kazuma and somehow ended up pinning the tail on his leg. Trying to calculate for the extra high he said was the reason, but obviously, no one believed that. After that, Kamui, Kumi, Tsuneto, Miwa, Hayou and several others took a turn. Even Shion had a go at it, and he actually managed to accurately pin the tail on Chrono. Kazuma could feel a slight tinge of jealousy as he saw the two of them joke around after the fact, wishing it were him instead of Shion. Of course, Shion already had Hayou for a boyfriend, so it wasn’t like he was going to steal Chrono or anything, but that didn’t make him feel any better about himself.

At last, the final guests arrived, being Aichi and Emi, and the festivities officially began. Shion had rented a small orchestra for the evening, adding to the elegance factor atop the buffet of gourmet food and general ambiance. Kazuma sulkily drank from his small fancy-ass plastic chalice.

“Wow, you look like you’re having the time of your life Ma-kun.”

He looked over to see Kazumi, smiling as if he didn’t know how he really felt.

“Yeah, this party is a real show stopper.”

“I should think so. This is The Kiba family we’re talking about, everything about them is drenched in style and class, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Whatever.”

Kazumi knew exactly what was eating at his younger step-brother, but instead of pressing the matter directly, he decided to continue flying under the radar to help his lovestruck sibling. He reached out and grabbed Kazuma’s free arm.

“Let’s go listen to some music, I hear they’re from France.”

Almost spilling what was left in his cup, Kazuma followed unwillingly. “Oi! Watch it!”

“Oh yeah,” he reached out and took the plastic from his hand, “you won’t need that for now.”

“What? Why?”

But before he could even attempt to get a straight answer out of his older brother, Kazumi began to spin and twirl him.

“Hey! What are you-?”

All he saw was a devilish grin before he was spun out in front of the musicians and into the arms of someone else.

“Take good care of him!” Kazumi call from behind him.

“Why you…” Kazuma began to push himself away from the random person until his eyes met vibrant apple green. It took a moment to register the fact that he was indeed standing arm in arm with a now dapperly dressed Chrono Shindou. A fitted grey vest with a red satin back, a crisp white long sleeved button up and matching grey pants replaced the dorky reindeer suit; he was the epitome of getting yourself a guy who could do both.

“Sh-Shindou! What are you-? I thought-!”

“Kamui said I only had to wear it until everyone arrived, it was just my luck that Aichi and Emi got stuck in traffic. I was actually wearing this underneath the entire time, waiting so I could finally take it off.” He smiled was so brilliant and bright, flowers could be brought back to life. Meanwhile, Kazuma felt like he was dying inside. The reindeer was one thing, why did he have to look so good in formal wear too?!

“Sh-Shindou…”

“Oh yeah, your bother told me you know how to dance?”

He was going to kill Kazumi later.

“O-only a little. I was forced to learn when I was younger, I didn’t really pick up on it well.”

“Well that’s pretty much the opposite of what he told me. C’mon, teach me how to dance. Unless you think you aren’t capable of teaching?” Chrono prodded.

He didn’t, but his pride couldn’t resist a challenge. He may have a crush on Chrono, but he was also his rival; he wasn’t about to back down no matter how badly he wanted to.

“Heh, you’re about to get the greatest dance lesson of your life. Prepare yourself Shindou.”

“I don’t really think that’s what a dance teacher would say.”

“Shut it.”

He began by teaching him the proper posture and placement of the hands (“for the sake of this lesson I’ll be taking the lead” is what he said, mocking something similar Chrono had said during their teaching fight), as well as going through the basic steps. Once the song ended and another began (strangely suited to the type of dance Kazuma was teaching, how about that?) they slowly stepped along to the 3/4 time, watching their feet more than each other, but soon the steps became more fluid and natural, and before they knew it the two boys were flying across the dance floor, like they’d been dance partners for years. Kazuma felt exhilarated; had dancing always been this fun? He couldn’t remember, but he knew that at this moment, he loved dancing. As the song was ending, Kazuma decided to get a bit risky, and before Chrono knew what was going on, Kazuma had led them into a dip just as the final notes were drawn out. Chrono’s eyes were locked on Kazuma as he slowly pulled him back up.

“Well? What’d I tell ya?”

Chrono took a moment to compose himself before playfully punching his arm.

“Okay fine, you told me. That was pretty fun.”

Kazuma felt on top of the world; until the weight of embarrassment crashed down all at once. Did he really just teach his crush how to waltz? And he dipped him to boot?! 

“Dude, you okay? You look like you’re suffocating-“

“BATHROOM!” He cried out before rushing away.

“Wha…?” 

“So, what do you think of my bother? Isn’t he an excellent dancer?”

Chrono looked over to see Kazumi, innocently sipping from his plastic chalice.

“Y-yeah, he’s amazing. I never knew he could move like that.”

“Ma-kun doesn’t like to admit it, but he’s actually quite graceful.”

“You don’t say…”

Several minutes passed before Kazuma re-entered the party, having to run cold water on his face in order to minimize the aftereffects of what he’d done. 

“Did I really just teach Shindou how to waltz? How mortifying,” he muttered to himself.

“Kazuma!”

There in front of him was the charming swirl himself, with a surprisingly concerned expression.

“You feeling alright? You ran off pretty quickly.”

“Y-yeah, I’m good.”

“Well, if you say so.”

If there was one thing Kazuma hated about himself, it was that he could never be honest with himself with others. He always kept his true feelings hidden behind vague words and small lies to hide his insecurities. Although it was a means of protection, he hated how closed off he came off as, especially towards Chrono.

“Come with me.”

“What? Why?” Kazuma asked, unsure of the sudden request.

“Just come. Trust me, it’ll be worth it.”

“Okay, I guess.”

Neither of them saw the giddy smile on Kazumi’s face.

“Kazumi? Is something wrong?” Verno asked.

He shook his head. “Not a thing Verno. Just… excited is all.”

As they walked away from the party into the dark halls of the manor, Kazuma noticed how far up Chrono was walking compared to him. He seemed like he was in a hurry. Where were they going exactly? 

After a minute of silent walking, Chrono stopped and looked around.

“This way,” he directed, leading them to a door that opened to the chilly back garden of the manor. “Pretty neat huh?”

“I guess? I don’t know, it just looks like a bunch of plants to me.”

Chrono made 3 tsk sounds, scolding him for putting it down before he gave it a chance.

“You might be thinking that now, but just you wait!” He grabbed his hand and began running towards a small building towards the middle of the garden. Kazuma, who was trying not to trip, was actually more focused on Chrono hand than anything else. He couldn’t help but blush.

They entered the gazebo-like building, and still holding hands, ran up to the second floor, and only stopped when they reached the balcony, huffing and puffing.

“Did we… really… need to run?”

“Not really… but,” Chrono straighten up, “I really wanted you to see this.”

“See what?”

That’s when he looked down and from their view, he finally say what Chrono was talking about. The arrangement of assorted plants had been coloured coded, and together formed a picture that resembled the back of a stride card.

“Whoa. Where’d he get silver bushes?” 

“Right? I remember finding this when I snuck in here a couple years ago, it was pretty damn cool.”

“That’s- wait, what?”

“I’ll tell ya later.”

The two of them looked out from the balcony, watching as fat fluffy flakes of snow began falling from the sky. It was the most beautiful thing Kazuma had seen all night- at least, until he looked beside him, that is.

“Sh-Shindou…”

Chrono looked over. “Are you sure you know my name? You’ve been stuttering it all night?”

Determined not to be sway by his teasing, Kazuma took a deep breath.

“You… look good.”

A splash of red as bold as his hair appeared on Chrono’s face. He didn’t expect Kazuma to be so forward, like, at all. Then again, he didn’t know he could dance either, so tonight was just full of surprises.

“Uh- th-thanks! You too- I mean, I said that earlier but I mean-“

The stumbling of his words only made him look cuter in the other’s eyes. A small glimmer of hope for the blue haired than, yet he didn’t want to give in so easily without knowing for sure.

“Shindou.”

“Yeah?”

“…I like you.”

And he said it. Just like that. He didn’t mean to obviously, what he actually wanted to say was a lot less direct and more beat-around-the-bush like. Silence filled the air as the weight of what’d just been said seeped into their minds.

Shit.

Oh my god.

Chrono couldn’t believe it. He’d thought to himself literally seconds ago that this night had been full of surprises, but this beat out everything else. 

“Kazuma… You mean that? Like, you’re serious?“

“Of course I’m serious!” He said that much louder than he meant to. Why wasn’t his brain working with his body? It’s like he was wired completely backwards and upside-down.

“Kazuma…” 

The other looked shaken. Chrono looked around, trying to figure out what he could do to help, when he noticed a small bundle of red and green above their heads.

“Mistletoe.”

“Huh?” 

“Look.” He pointed up. There it hung, swaying slightly in the chilly breeze.

“Yeah, so-?” Kazuma was interrupted by a softness placed against his lips. His eyes widened, and were still wide when Chrono pulled away. 

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you didn’t know about mistletoe.”

“W-well of course I know about it! Don’t get all cocky!”

Chrono smiled cheekily while Kazuma glared, both blushing.

Meanwhile, from the party, Kazumi was giving a solid fist bump to Shion as he looked through a pair of binoculars.

“Just as I said, impeccable.”


End file.
